Jon's Picks (6 Live)
If you LOVE high scoring matchups with fierce attacks, then please, I beg you, stay away from this match. We have a match between two incredible defenses, who prioritize sitting back and parking the bus. Ivory Coast won their group stage without conceding a single goal over 10 matches. Ecuador finished second in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers, conceded just five goals over 18 matches. Neither team has a great attack, but both teams are absolute walls on defense. I think this ends 0-0.
Sweden are a bit of a bizzare side in this World Cup. They are famous for qualifying for the World Cup, without winning a single group stage match. It doesn't matter how they got here though, they're here, so how can they win now. They can only win if they score multiple goals because my word their defense is brutal. Sweden have Gyokeres and Isak on attack which is great, but look at their recent games. They've conceded in 11 straight. Expect goals with Tunisia smelling blood in the water.
Germany is a team that has been shrouded with disappointment over the last decade. This is a team full of quality football heritage, but they've struggled against teams they have no business struggling against. This is their chance to put all the nonsense behind them, and have a good World Cup, and they've been given a gift of an opening match. If Germany tries for 90 minutes, they could score 10 goals here. I don't believe they'll go all out, but they should use this game to pick up some confidence before facing harder opponents, so expect them to run it up for at least a half.
This is the kind of match for Spain where you make a statement. Spain are one of the joint favorites to win it all, and a big reason is their ruthlessness. It doesn't matter if they're playing Cape Verde, Germany, or France, they are going to press and they are going to fight for 90 minutes. They have one of the best midfields in the competition only behind Portugal, and their attack rivals any other team in the world. I expect Spain to use this match as a chance to send a warning to every other team as they run up the score. You don't want to mess with Spain.
I would like to apologize to all our Cape Verde fans out there. You are all in for a brutal first match in your World Cup campaign. Spain is the joint favorites to win the World Cup alongside France, and are favored to have the most goals scored in the World Cup. Just look at this squad. They are world-class from front to back. Even if this squad rotates, I have them winning this by 3+ goals. Mike Oyarzabal and Ferran Torres are going to run over this group, and when Lamine Yamal is fit, expect him to run rampant as well. Spain might win this by 5+ goals.
If you know me, you know that I have been consistently impressed by the growth of Japan in the football space. This is a team that during the 22' World Cup, beat both Germany and Spain. This is a team that is managed so well it's almost scary, and it's a team that doesn't rely solely on one star to carry the weight of the team. The way Japan flows together is a thing of beauty. That being said, Netherlands is a good attacking side. I'm expecting BTTS to cash, and over 2.5 goals to hit with both teams possessing fantastic finishers.
Group F is absolutely fascinating. It's one of the groups where I could realistically see any of the four teams qualifying. Netherlands are the favorites, with Japan and Sweden close behind them, but even Tunisia is a solid squad. While Netherlands are the favorites, I think the bias towards the Dutch is carrying the numbers here. Japan is the better side in my mind. The dominated the group qualifiers, outscoring their opponents 30-3. They also have grown since their impressive 2022 run. Look at Ayase Ueda from Feyenoord to have a fantastic World Cup, as they take a point off Netherlands.
Turkiye are going to be a cash cow for goals in this group stage. This team is disgustingly loaded with top tier attack. They have Kenan Yildiz from Juventus. They have Arda Guler from Real Madrid. They have Calhanoglu from Inter Milan. They have Aktürkoğlu from Fenerbache. This is a team that everyone in Group D should be terrified in terms of defending, and I expect Turkiye to cover this over 2.5 goals by themselves. Keep an eye on Turkiye, and take their Team Total as well.
This line makes absolutely no sense to me, and I don't say that to be disrespectful of Australia. They are a bit of a sleeper team that has the potential to do some damage in this group, but in my humble opinion, Turkiye are the best team in this group, and shouldn't be playable against anyone. Turkiye looked incredible in their friendlies, and Arda Guler is going to run rampant in this competition. I love Turkiye ML, and I'd take their team total as well.
Switzerland are a very solid side. They are loaded with top European talent with players like Granite Xhaka, Noah Okafor and Ruben Vargas. While Switzerland have found good form in their qualifiers, Qatar are one of those teams that are happy to be included at this point and have very low expectations. They are not the worst squad in this competition, but their offense is going to have a brutal time maintaining any possession or getting past a very solid Swiss backline. I have Switzerland winning this 2-0.
Everyone and their mother (including my own) thinks that Brazil are going to roll over their group. They have legendary manager Carlo Ancelotti at the helm of the team for this World Cup, and he's made it very clear that he plans on fixing Brazil and making a deep run. This makes sense, however, don't count out Morocco. They made it to the Semi-finals in 2022 and still have their core team together. They looked fantastic against Norway in their friendly, and this is a team that knows how to play against Physical South American opponents. I believe this ends in a draw.
Scotland are a team that most people are going to write-off, especially when they're in a group with teams like Brazil and Morocco, but man you can't sleep on this squad. Look at some of the names on their attack: Scott McTominay, LAwrence Shankland, John McGinn and Che Adams just to name a few. This is a team that regardless of their opponent, they will attack, press forward, and score some dang goals. Haiti's defense will struggle all competition, and I expect Scotland to cover this over by themselves.
I'm just going to get this out of the way now, I have a bit of a bias towards this Scotland squad. I really like how they play together and Scott McTominay is an absolute stud of a player. They worked their butts off through qualification to get here, and this is a team many people will write-off early, but I won't be one of them. Scotland are a team that play for blood every second of every match. This isn't a team that parks the bus, and we saw that when they put up four against Curacao and Bolivia in their friendlies. Haiti did a fantastic job to qualify for this, but that's it. They will be the punching bag of this group.
USA under manager Pochettino have started to find their goal scoring boots. They've played two friendlies in the month of May in which we saw them score an impressive three goals against a defensive Senegal, and also score a goal against a strong German squad. The big issues we're seeing with USA, is their defense is really susceptible to counter attacks and set pieces. The defense feels a bit disjointed, and a team like Paraguay who can't defend as well, will have to press. I expect goals in this game, with BTTS cashing, and USA picking up the victory.
I have gone on record multiple times not talking too highly about this USA squad. I think that while home field advantage during a competition is a massive deal, the team still has to come together as a cohesive unit to win. I generally don't see that cohesion with USMNT. With that being said, this is a squad that does possess quite a bit of individual talent, and it's a team that is expected to win the group. They'll have to deal with Turkiye eventually, but for now they need to start with a victory, for all their supporters, and the team itself as they play a much weaker Paraguay side.